By J. Scott Hill

I miss the Chocolite candy bar. The British Aero and Mirage bars are pretty close, and will carry me through a Chocolite jones. A friend of mine, an old theatre ham, misses the Candlelight Dinner Playhouse. When she was a girl, her family frequently took her there. She remembers marveling at those productions. I recommended to her that The Theatre at the Center might carry her through a Candlelight jones.

Theatre at the Center in Munster, Indiana, has taken on their second consecutive Ken Ludwig show. This one is Crazy for You, a major rework of the original book from the George and Ira Gershwin musical Girl Crazy. As with Ken Ludwig’s Leading Ladies earlier this season, TATC Artistic Director and former Candlelight Dinner Playhouse impresario William Pullinsi directs.

The show begins with dancer Bobby Childs trying to wheedle an audition from Zangler Follies impresario Bela Zangler and so breaks in to the first big song-and-dance number “K-ra-zy for You.”

Of course, behind every wannabe musical theatre star lurks a domineering mother. Bobby’s banking magnate mother sends her twinkle-toed heir to foreclose on a theatre in Deadrock, Nevada — over the vehement protests of his hard-boiled fiancée Irene. Not long after arriving in Deadrock, Bobby lays eyes upon the theatre owner’s daughter, Polly. Things from this point proceed as anyone might expect.

The book is smart and witty. One thing that continually impresses me with playwright Ken Ludwig is his ability to create characters that look archetypal at first glance, yet bloom into unique people.

The music in Crazy for You is not only from Girl Crazy, but is cherry-picked from the Gershwin catalog to excellent effect.

The seven-piece orchestra — under conductor William A. Underwood — sound tight, if overwhelming at times. Of particular note here is drummer Ethan Deppe; Deppe keeps the beat crisp and makes the air scintillate with his cymbal work.

Choreographer Linda Fortunato, scenic designer Bill Bartelt, and lighting designer Denise Karczewski create spectacle that is absolute joy, particularly the set that instantly changes from New York City to Nevada with a lighting effect, and the Busby Berkeley-inspired number at the end of Act I.

Most of the cast gives exceptional performances. All of the actresses playing Zangler Girls fully realize their characters, each with personalities distinct from the others — not half a dozen Miss Adelaides from Guys and Dolls. My favorite is Nicole Miller (Margie): her eyes twinkle more brightly, her smile seems more genuine, her taps snap more precisely.

Similarly, the actors playing the cowboys put forward fleshed-out characters. Ben Kirberger stands out as the affable Moose, particularly during the playfully choreographed “Slap That Bass.”

Mary Redmon creats a wonderfully different sort of pigeon-breasted matron as Mother Childs: more Miss Havisham than Margaret Dumont. Jim Sherman plays Polly’s doting and doddering father, Everett, with an even temperament — forthright and avuncular. Matthew Amador gives Lank a Snidely Whiplash quality burbling beneath his western charm.

Irene is made deliciously vampy by Lauren Creel, like Rita Hayworth mixed with Lauren Bacall. Me-ow, scratch. Her big number, “Naughty Baby,” is the best female solo in the show.

Larry Adams is hilarious as Bela Zangler. Zangler is a character nearly impossible to go too big with, and Adams went huge, but reined it in, contrasting Zangler’s bombast with the touching subtlety in his love for Tess. The scenes between Bela Zangler and Bobby Childs are a pleasure to watch.

As great as many of the supporting characters were, Richard Strimer really carries the whole show. Strimer stars as Bobby Child: trust fund baby, Follies hoofer hopeful, and foreclosure flunky. Strimer creates an enthusiasm in Bobby that radiates out through his unflappable moxie and spreads throughout the theatre. His tap and soft-shoe are worthy of the great vaudeville houses. Richard Strimer’s singing is melodic, pitch perfect, strong, and full of Bobby’s zeal. He has a Duck Soup-inspired mirror-image scene with Larry Adams that is one of the funniest pieces of physical comedy I have seen on stage in a while. Strimer plays Bobby as so genuine, so earnest, that I believe that Bobby is immediately lovestruck upon first sight of Polly, even though he is betrothed to the caustic kitten Irene.

I wish I could see whatever it is that Bobby Childs sees in Polly, as Amy Brophy falters somewhat in the role. If Bobby is going to forget about sultry Irene in a heartbeat, there needs to be something visible to the audience about Polly’s manner that justifies such a drastic change of heart. Brophy isn’t wooden or amateurish, but she does not sparkle along with the rest of the dazzling cast. Additionally, her musical numbers should have been transposed higher, as she missed notes near the bottom of her range.

The biggest letdown is that the big finish isn’t big enough. Perhaps Act I ended with such a lavish number that Act II could not compete. For the big finish, the showgirls’ costumes are gorgeous and opulent, but only three chorus dancers are used. Three. I felt short-changed.

Crazy for You fizzles out a bit, but still has enough spark to pop at the end. Several excellent performances — particularly Larry Adams and Richard Strimer — overcome the mediocre ones.

My ten-year-old daughter attended this show. She marveled at this production. She may be developing a theatre jones of her own.

Go see Crazy for You. William Pullinsi has crafted another sweet treat at the theatre, as he has done time and again for decades.

3 STARS

(“Crazy for You” runs through June 17 at Theatre at the Center, 1040 Ridge Road, Munster, Indiana, 219-836-3255.)

Theatre at the Center (Munster,IN)

Crazy for You production photos by Johnny Knight

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